Salon by Day Theater by Night

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Step inside attractions salon and it looks like what you’d expect. Lots of color, ladies, loud music and even a four legged friend, but take a real good look and something stands out.

“Something is changing. Clients come in and they want to know where the changing room is this time. I’m like it’s behind the sofa this time,” says owner Brian Fontenot.

Fontenot has been in the beauty business for 25 years and these last five years he’s also been in the theater business. The twist comes here. He tangles these two together under one roof. It’s Attractions Salon by day and Cutting Edge Theater by night.

“Slidell and the North Shore doesn’t really have a lot of areas for people to come out and express themselves, so opening this theater gives us the opportunity to do family shows as well as things that are more on the risqué side,” says Fontenot, “We have different options by using our platforms and rolling them around. Everything rolls and moves and spins so it makes it a lot easier. It’s a smooth transition; about 10 to 15 minutes to turn the salon by day to a theater by night.”

They have enough space to hold up to 75 people, and that’s not including what’s behind the scenes. Lots of room to rehearse, relax, and get into character. The latest production to roll through Cutting Edge Theater is Sordid Lives.

“It’s a campy comedy about white trash Texas people. It’s very funny. They’re planning their grandmother’s funeral and you see the love of the family. It’s learning to love the family that you have instead of the family that you want,” explains Fontenot.